Ghostface (Scream)
"Do you like scary movies?"—GhostfaceEvil-doer Full NameUnknownAliasThe Ghostface Killer, Father DeathOriginScreamOccupationMurdererPowers / SkillsMaster of stealthHobbySlaughter his victimsGoalsKill Sidney PrescottType of Villain. The knife used by Ghostface in the films is a custom prop knife based on the Buck 120 Hunting Knife that has since been discontinued by Buck. The knife blades are made of aluminium or chrome-paint-coated plastic with a rubber handle depending on the scenario for which they are needed. The handle is black with a silver, metal-appearance for the tip. The Buck 120 knife was chosen as the model for the Ghostface weapon because of the large blade it features, though the Buck 120 itself was discontinued due to customer complaints that the blade length was deemed "too big" for gutting animals. CharacterizationGhostface is rarely depicted as speaking while physically on screen to aid in concealing the identity of the character behind the mask, except for grunts and groans when injured which are dubbed into the film during the editing phase by Jackson.2 The voice given to the character, provided by Jackson, is used when talking to another character over the phone or to display the use of the voice changer when the killer reveals himself. Despite being portrayed by different characters in each film, Ghostface displays similar personality and physical attributes regardless of who is wearing the costume or speaking to a target. Ghostface is often shown to taunt his targets, initially representing himself as charming and even flirtatious when speaking. His conversations turn confrontational and intimidating, using his knowledge of other characters or graphically describing his intentions before appearing to the target physically. Craven considers Jackson's voice performance as Ghostface to have "evil sophistication". When confronting his intended victim, Ghostface is portrayed in varying ways, sometimes quick and efficient and other times clumsy, falling, or colliding with objects that hinder his pursuit, a characteristic that varies based upon who is wearing the costume. All of the characters that use the Ghostface disguise share the trait of taunting their victims and prolonging a kill when they appear to have an advantage. The Billy/Stu Ghostface would gut their victims after killing them; this was not performed on Tatum Riley (Rose McGowan) who was killed in a mechanical garage door. This Ghostface in particular would ask their victim questions about horror films and employ the tropes of the genre in their attacks, displaying a detachment from their reality and aligned with the same self-awareness of the film itself which toys with the expectations of the horror genre. The second Ghostface, created by Mickey and Mrs. Loomis, would simply stab their victim to death but often in a public place or with witnesses. The third Ghostface, created by Roman, used theatricality and movie props to attack his victims, using a voice changer that allowed him to sound like many other people, casting suspicion and doubt on other characters. In addition, he would use images and the synthesized voice of Maureen to specifically taunt Sidney, even shrouding himself in a bloodied, crime scene cover, alluding to the murder of Maureen, to fool Sidney into believing that she was losing her sanity. The fourth Ghostface, created by Jill and Charlie, filmed each murder on web cameras hidden around the environment and spy cameras in their masks. They mostly stabbed their victims to death but would go further and gut them if they wanted. They also made some of the murders public to gain the attention of the world press.The motivations for Ghostface's killing vary in each film and are respective to each killer wearing the costume. Billy claimed to have been driven to insanity by his mother's abandonment, an incident he blamed on Maureen, and after taking his revenge on her chose to continue his spree, leading towards her daughter Sidney, while Stu Macher lists peer pressure as his motivation. In Scream 2, Mrs. Loomis cites her motivation as simple revenge against the person she holds responsible for her son's death, while Mickey desires the fame that his involvement in the killings will garner when he is caught. Scream 3 antagonist Roman seeks revenge for what he sees as his mother's rejection and abandonment by engineering Maureen's death and trying to kill Sidney, seeing her as having the family-life he was denied. In Scream 4, Jill claimed she did it for fame. She wanted to become the new Sidney and get the fame of being the sole survivor of the new massacre, while Charlie did it for those reasons and his love for Jill. In costume, the Ghostfaces share a ritualistic mannerism of gripping the blade of their knife between thumb and forefinger and wiping it clean of any blood following a murder by drawing their hand from handle to the tip of the knife. This characteristic was given to the character by stuntman Dane Farwell who wore the costume for many of its scenes in Scream. Each killer is depicted as possessing effective physical abilities, such as the capabilities of nearly flawless stealth, prowling without being detected, moving silently, and efficiently vanishing from their targets' defense. Additionally, the killer tends to display sufficient strength that allows them to overpower victims, such as in Scream 2, in regards to defeating two trained detectives single-handedly. Ghostface is shown to be able to sustain and even ignore severe levels of physical damage, surviving blunt trauma, stabbing wounds and gunshots. Billy, Mickey, Roman, and Jill all had to be shot through the head to be killed, despite having sustained severe injuries prior. Cultural impactMcFarlane Toys produced a 6-inch figurine of Ghostface in 1999 for the "Movie Maniacs II" series of horror and science fiction inspired line of character models. A series of figures were produced by NECA for Scream 4 featuring the standard mask and black cowl plus variations such as "Zombie Ghostface" with a decayed appearance on the mask and "Scarecrow Ghostface" with brown, burlap material used for the mask and clothing.Ghostface has been parodied and referenced numerous times in media following his appearance in the Scream series of slasher films, most prominently in the parody film Scary Movie (2000) where a killer dressed as Ghostface commits a series of murders and is later revealed to be several people as in Scream. In the parody film Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the Thirteenth (2000), a killer wearing a Jason Voorhees-style hockey mask is set on fire, his mask melting to resemble that of Ghostface. The film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001) features Ghostface, as Shannen Doherty and Craven provide cameos as themselves making the then non-existent Scream 4, but Doherty objects when Ghostface turns out to be played by the orangutan, Suzann. As in film, Ghostface has been referenced repeatedly in various television programs and commercials. In the same year as the release of Scream 3, the mask made an appearance on Beverly Hills 90210 and the Nickelodeon series Cousin Skeeter. It was also used as an ornament in the bedroom of the character Dawson in Dawson's Creek, a show created by Scream writer, Williamson. character appears in a 1999 episode of Celebrity Deathmatch entitled "The Unknown Murderer", where he threatens to kill a scream queen every round, murdering Barrymore, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jennifer Love Hewitt before planting his cell phone on a platypus to frame him, causing Campbell and Sarah Michelle Gellar to fight it. The mask was later used in The Sopranos episode "Fortunate Son" (2001) where it is worn by the character Christopher to commit a robbery. The costume is referenced in an episode of the television series Boomtown entitled "All Hallow's Eve" (2002) where a police officer uses the costume to frighten a bully who has been terrorizing other kids. In the Japanese anime FLCL episode "Marquis de Cabras" (2003), protagonist Naota's face changes to resemble that of Ghostface frequently during a scene where he and his family are eating spicy curry. The character makes a cameo appearance in Tripping the Rift in the episode "The Devil and a Guy Named Webster" (2004) as the judge when Chode sells his soul to the devil and finds a way to sue him. He also appears in a 2004 advert for Trivial Pursuit: '90s edition; representing iconic characters of the 1990s along side Dennis Rodman and the character Rose from the 1997 film Titanic. A parody of Ghostface appears in the television series All Grown Up! episode "Interview with a Campfire" (2004) where Lil DeVille is taunted by phone and stalked by a character wearing an Easter Bunny mask. The character appears briefly in The Simpsons episode "Home Away from Homer" (2005) where Homer Simpson suggests him as a babysitter for his daughter Maggie Simpson. Roger L. Jackson lends his voice to Ghostface in the Robot Chicken episode "That Hurts Me" (2005) alongside other famous film killers in a show that parodies Big Brother, launching a prank war against Pinhead and Freddy Krueger before giving a speech to save himself from elimination from the show. He is referenced by Kenny Powers, the main character of Eastbound & Down who requests to wear the mask while having sex. In Scream XXX: A Porn Parody, a new Ghostface (wearing a clown variant of the Father Death mask) begins murdering the cast and crew of an in-production pornographic parody of the Stab series. In his book Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film, Adam Rockoff opined that Ghostface's mask was a "striking, surreal and downright terrifying presence". Calling the mask a "hyperbolic rendering" of Edvard Munch's The Scream, Rockoff wrote that the face is "twisted in an exaggerated, almost mocking grin, as if reflecting the look of terror and surprise on his victims' faces." Tony Magistrale also discussed the similarities between Ghostface's mask and The Scream in his book Abject Terrors: Surveying the Modern and Postmodern Horror Film, stating that the painting, "an apt representation of the degree of alienation from other people, inspires the killers' murderous agenda". In the first Scream, both Stu Macher and Billy Loomis are the murderers. They are both 17 years-old. Billy was dating the protagonist of the film, Sidney Prescott (played by actress Neve Campbell.) Billy is portrayed as a stereotypical "bad-boy." Stu is portrayed as a class clown, and party monster. Stu's life is cut short when Sidney pushes a TV on his head. Billy's, when Sidney shoots him in the head. In Scream 2, the two killers are a boy named Mickey Alteri and Mrs. Loomis (Billy's mom.) They are both shot and killed. In Scream 3, the killer is Roman Bridger, a film director. He is shot by Dewey. Ghostface has been known to call his victims and taunt them with horror trivia questions such as the first murder, in the first movie, Casey Becker. Ghostface asked questions including these scary movies... Friday The 13th - Jason Voorhees Nightmare On Elm Street - Freddy Krueger Halloween - Michael Myers When Casey gets the question for Friday The 13th wrong, getting it mixed up with Jason Voorhees, he kills her boyfriend and then he kills her. Category:Organization Category:Antagonists Category:Antagonist Category:Movie Villains Category:Non Dinsey Villains Category:Villains